Tracing Technoscapes

Colourful surface treatments form an integral element of vernacular and élite architecture of ancient societies. This is also true for the various regions of the Eastern Mediterranean in the 2nd millennium B.C.E., where elaborate wall paintings furnished temples, tombs, palatial buildings, and in general more elaborate houses. From a present-day perspective, these rich images provide invaluable insights into past realities as well as interconnections between different visual systems. However, beyond stunning images, the materiality of wall paintings implicates a whole range of specific technical choices and gestures executed during the artistic process. The bodies of knowledge immanent in the practice of plaster and pigment preparation, in the application of paint and in the conception and execution of compositions allow us to compare the wall painting corpora of the Eastern Mediterranean on a technical level and to trace differences and similarities in a cross-cultural perspective.Evolved from an interdisciplinary workshop held at the 10th ICAANE in Vienna, this volume provides insights into the various technical approaches and underlying bodies of knowledge in the different wall painting traditions of the Eastern Mediterranean and West Asia and throws light on the way and extent of their possible interwovenness. Moreover, it seeks to overcome regional as well as disciplinary isolation of technical studies by bringing together authors of different scientific backgrounds ranging between Conservational Studies, Archaeometry, Prehistory, Egyptology, as well as Western Asiatic and Classical Archaeology. In doing so, the book permits an interdisciplinary perspective on this field of study.This book is equally intended for archaeologists, art historians, conservators and the interested layperson and hopes to stimulate more research in this direction in future.ContentsTracing Technoscapes in the Production of Eastern Mediterranean Wall Paintings. An IntroductionConstance von Rüden, Johannes Jungfleisch, and Johannes BeckerWestern AsiaWall Painting Techniques in Early Bronze Syria. Clues of Parallelism with the Traditions of the Mediterranean and Mesopotamian RegionsAlessandro Di Ludovico and Marco RamazzottiContextes techniques et historiques des peintures murales du grand palais royal de Mari. Une mise au pointBéatrice MullerPreliminary Remarks on the Technical and Iconographical Aspects of the Middle Bronze Age Wall Paintings from Tell el-Burak (Lebanon) in Relation to the Aegean and EgyptJulia BertschThe Advantages of Visible Induced Luminescence Technique for the Investigation of Aegean-style Wall Painting. A Case Study from Tel Kabri, IsraelRavit Linn, Eric Cline, and Assaf Yasur-LandauEgyptOriginal Painting Techniques. Methods and Materials in 18th Dynasty Tombs, in the Valley of the Nobles, EgyptBianca Madden and Hugues TavierMalqata - The Painted PalacePeter Lacovara and Alexandra WinkelsHow to Paint a Landscape. Technical Perspectives on the 'Aegean'-style Landscape Paintings from Tell el-Dab'aJohannes BeckerFor Further Information Please See the Back of the Plaster. Architectural Impressions in the 'Aegean'-style Wall Paintings from Tell el-Dab'aJohannes JungfleischBetween Common Craft Tradition and Deviation. The Making of Stucco Reliefs in the Eastern MediterraneanConstance von Rüden and Tobias SkowronekThe AegeanForming the Image. Approaches to Painting at Ayia Irini, Kea and Tell el-Dab'aLyvia MorganThe Find Contexts of Knossian Relief Wall Paintings. Some RamificationsMatthew HaysomBronze Age Wall Paintings from Thebes. Technical Aspects and State of ConservationSofia Michailoglou, Maria Kaoglou, and Asterios Bakolas